This week, we continue our visit with Sinatra percussionist Emil Richards. What a life in music.

Born in 1932, Emil started playing the xylophone at age six. From his website bio, we learn that Richards joined the Hartford Symphony Orchestra while in the tenth grade, working under Arthur Fiedler and Fritz Mahler.

He began to work around New England with Bobby Hackett, Flip Phillips, and Chris Connor. By the mid-fifties, Emil was working with Charlie Mingus, Ed Shaunghnessy, and Ed Thigpen while doing studio recordings for artists such as Perry Como, Ray Charles, and Mitch Aires.

Moving to Los Angeles in 1959, Richards went to work with the Paul Horn Quintet, Jimmy Witherspoon, the Shorty Rogers Big Band, Lennie Bruce, and Lord Buckly. He started recording for Nelson Riddle, Judy Garland, Sarah Vaughan, Doris Day and Frank.

Did I mention Emil’s time with George Harrison, Nat Cole and George Shearing? His credits are endless.

Richards and FS. The ’62 World Tour

In 1962, Richards joined Sinatra on the legendary world tour to benefit children’s charities. His stories of traveling with Frank, Vegas, Elvis and more are the stuff of Emil Richards – Part Two, Saturday, March 7 at 6pm ET and Sunday, March 8 at 8am ET exclusively on Metromedia Radio. Listen Live link – http://tunein.com/radio/Metromedia-Radio-s203898/• Please SHARE

THE CENTENNIAL ROLL-OUT CONTINUES

As posted at Amazon. In celebration of Frank Sinatra’s centennial year, Capitol/Universal Music have created Ultimate Sinatra a new career-spanning collection that brings together recordings made for Columbia, Capitol and Reprise for the first time and offers previously unreleased Sinatra recordings across all formats, the most expansive of which is a four-CD deluxe set.

The top-of-the-range four-disc collection boasts 100 tracks, for 100 years, plus a never before released bonus track. This deluxe edition also includes an additional download EP featuring four further previously unreleased recordings, redeemable via an included voucher.

The deluxe edition also features an 80-page booklet with a new essay by Sinatra historian and author Charles Pignone, as well as rare photos.

Ultimate Sinatra also comes as a 2LP 180g vinyl set (24 tracks) as well as a 25-track single CD edition. Sneakily, the previously unreleased Just In Time (Alternate Version) is a digital bonus track on the 2LP and 4CD deluxe, but is included physically on the single CD, which bizarrely chooses to offer the standard version of Chicago as its digital bonus. Full track listings are below.

Ultimate Sinatra is released on 20 April 2015 (the vinyl set follows a few weeks later).

CELEBRATING JOBIM

On December 8, 2014, a bronze statue honoring the legendary Antonio Carlos Jobim was on placed on Ipanema beach by the Rio de Janerio City Hall. The unveiling marked the twentieth anniversary of Jobim’s passing.

Did you know that Jobim composed literally hundreds of songs and released more than 50 albums?

THE SINATRA SONGBOOK premiered in 1974. Yours truly, this radio series and THE SINATRA SONGBOOK Facebook Page are not affiliated with the Facebook group that carries this name. Nor is this series related to the Myspace page that carries our name.

From his 1958 arrival in Los Angeles to the present, Emil Richards remains among the most prolific and in-demand percussionists in the business.

Emil Richards… at work and at play

From Frank’s Reprise recordings of the sixties to live concerts that include the legendary ’62 world tour benefiting children’s charities, Richards was part of the experience. The two hours we spent together offer a splendid perspective of the period.

Join me and Emil Richards for part one of our visit, Saturday, February 28 at 6pm ET and Sunday, March 1 at 8am ET exclusively on Metromedia Radio.

THE SINATRA SONGBOOK premiered in 1974. Yours truly, this radio series and THE SINATRA SONGBOOK Facebook Page are not affiliated with the Facebook group that carries this name. Nor is this series related to the Myspace page that carries our name.